It all
started when Thomas Shield threw his Waterloo Medal at a public
officer and shouted nasty words. There were many witnesses to
this incident. Thomas was declared temporarily insane and
placed under a doctor's care. This would prevent him from
going to jail. His aunt returned the Waterloo Medal to
him. She told Thomas it was given to her by the
magistrate. The magistrate said Thomas had earned the medal
and it was his to keep. Thomas did not feel any honor in the
medal but took it to please his aunt.

Thomas told his aunt
that he could no longer depend on her and had to start looking for
work. Thomas's aunt was once a housekeeper for Mr. Bransby's
family. Rev. Bransby ran the Manor House. As Rev.
Bransby spoke with Thomas, he asked why Thomas had to be placed
under restraint and was required to live under the care of a
doctor. Thomas replied, "Many men had the misfortune to be
wounded in the late war. It so happened that I was wounded in
my mind as well as in my body." Rev. Bransby was persuaded to
give Thomas a chance.

Thomas taught Latin to a group
of boys. One of the students was a young Edgar Allen Poe whose
stepfather spent several years in London on business.

When another boy, Charles Frant, arrives at school, he finds
things quite difficult. The other students are bullying
Charles. Things change when he makes friends with Edgar Allen
Poe. These two have a very similar resemblance to each
other.

Strange things begin to happen. Some strange men
approach the two boys. Henry Frant asks Thomas to do some
investigative work for him.

What does Thomas
discover?

Henry Frant is found murdered. Thomas
is asked to identify the body. However, the body is badly
mutilated. Is it Henry Frant? Is it someone else?
Could Henry Frant have faked his own death due to financial problems
at his bank?

This book opens with a narrator. You will
become very engrossed after starting to read this novel. It is
a real gothic thriller. The author has done an excellent job
of creating his characters. His descriptive language makes
them seem so real. The plot is intriguing and
suspenseful. Be sure to add this book to your reading
list. It is one that you will thoroughly
enjoy!